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If you’ve ever seen the terms “pingbacks” and “trackbacks” and wondered what they are, you’re not alone. These features were designed to help bloggers connect, but they aren’t as useful as they once were. In this post, I’ll explain what they do, whether you should use them, and how to enable or disable them.

What Are Pingbacks and Trackbacks?

Both pingbacks and trackbacks were created to notify other websites when you link to their content. The idea was to encourage conversations between bloggers and help spread useful content. However, they work slightly differently:

  • Trackbacks – If you link to someone’s blog post, you can manually send a trackback to notify them. If they approve it, a snippet of your post appears in their comments.
  • Pingbacks – These work automatically. When you link to another WordPress blog, their site gets a notification. If they approve it, your link may show up in their comments.

In theory, this sounds great. However, in practice, pingbacks and trackbacks have become more of a hassle than a help.

Should You Use Pingbacks and Trackbacks?

Years ago, pingbacks and trackbacks were useful for networking, but now they are mostly used for spam. Here’s why many site owners disable them:

  • Spam Overload – Spammers use trackbacks and pingbacks to flood websites with junk links.
  • Self-Ping Issues – If you link to your own content, WordPress may send a pingback to yourself, which can be annoying.
  • No Real SEO Benefit – Google doesn’t give much value to these links anymore, so they won’t help your rankings.

If you find that you’re getting more spam than genuine notifications, it’s best to turn them off.

How to Turn Pingbacks and Trackbacks On or Off in WordPress

Disabling pingbacks and trackbacks can help reduce spam and keep your comments section cleaner. Here’s how to do it:

  1. Go to Your WordPress Dashboard
  2. Click on “Settings” > “Discussion”
  3. Find the Option “Allow link notifications from other blogs (pingbacks and trackbacks) on new posts”
  4. Uncheck the Box to Disable Them
  5. Scroll Down and Click “Save Changes”

This will stop new pingbacks and trackbacks. However, existing ones will remain on your posts unless you remove them manually.

If you only want to disable them for specific posts:

  1. Edit a Post
  2. Scroll to the “Discussion” Section (If You Don’t See It, Click “Screen Options” at the Top and Tick the Box)
  3. Uncheck “Allow Trackbacks and Pingbacks”
  4. Update the Post

Final Thoughts

While pingbacks and trackbacks were originally meant to help bloggers connect, they’ve become outdated due to spam issues. If you want to interact with other bloggers, it’s better to leave thoughtful comments, share posts on social media, or reach out directly.

If you’re dealing with spam, turning off pingbacks and trackbacks is a simple way to clean up your site. Luckily, it only takes a few clicks in your WordPress settings


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